The present invention is directed to apparatuses and methods for transferring heat from electrical modules, and especially to apparatuses for transferring heat from electrical modules presenting a low profile in their assembled state with an electrical module.
Removal of heat from electrical or electronic circuitry is an important design consideration that improves operational performance of the circuitry and lengthens service live of products employing the circuitry. Many circuits in today's products are embodied at least in part in electrical or electronic modules containing a plurality of components. The terms electrical and electronic are used interchangeably here with no important distinction between them. It often occurs that particular individual components within an electrical module generate most of the waste heat. Heat transferring devices (also sometimes referred to as heat sinks, or heat sinking devices, or heat spreading devices or heat dissipating devices) are known to be placed in proximity with the heat generating components to transfer heat from those components and, hence, from the module.
Most efficient heat transferring materials are also electrically conductive. There is therefore often a need to ensure that an electrically insulating barrier is interposed between an electrical module and its associated heat transferring structure. Such electrical insulation is detrimental to heat transmission from the module if the insulation is too thick. Many materials have been tried in such designs, and electrostatically deposited electrically insulating material is one solution that has been employed. Such electrostatic deposition of electrically insulating material between an electrical module and its associated heat transferring apparatus is employed to advantage in the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
However, substantially any interface contributes to inefficiency in heat transfer. Thus, an intervening electrically insulating layer between an electrical module and an associated heat transferring apparatus affects efficiency of heat transfer from the module to the heat transferring apparatus. Further, a common structure for effecting heat transfer is to provide a heat transmitting base member adjacent to an electrical module, and install a heat transferring structure, such as a finned structure, upon the base member. The interface between the base member and the installed heat transferring structure presents another interface that reduces efficiency of heat transfer away from the module.
There is pressure in today's market toward designing products having a small physical size. A compact design achieving small physical size can contribute to greater need for heat transferring apparatuses because there is less room for heat-removing air flow over heat producing components.
There is a need for an efficient heat removing apparatus or heat transferring apparatus that offers a reduced size to contribute to a smaller-sized finished product.